So I went deep, art-school-style, and wrote up this after-the-fact bullshit. I’m not sure if this comes close to my MC Hammer pumps and a bump analysis, but it exercised the same creative muscles, and I had the best time.

JEFFKEEN: Look deeper. The modern building storefront (built by businessmen to sell their wares for profit), juxtaposed next to the old beautiful tree (planted to provide shade and oxygen to anyone, free of charge) is symbolic of the natural tension between the future and the past. The tree leans into the building, symbolic of the old generation trying to push back the change that the next generation created. The building stands strong, though, using new tools (glass, concrete, stone) that the old generation doesn’t understand, only knowing its roots, history, and its memories of many other buildings over the years. While both new and old want a better, more peaceful world, they disagree on the means to achieve it. The new holds a mirror up for the old generation to try and show them how difficult they’ve become. But just like the tree, the old can not see.

Life. Time passes on, things change, and eventually the old gets replaced with the new. So while the tree may remain in the same place for more years to come, its branches will be trimmed back so as to not interfere with the building. And eventually if it causes too much trouble, it will be chopped down and perhaps turned into a very similar building it spent too many years trying to fight against.

For now, it can do little else but try to enjoy the beautifully sunny day, and feel thankful that today is not its last. Like all of us.